a time, he became so excited by the contest that he
insisted on being put upon a horse. The attendants accordingly brought
a horse and placed him carefully upon it; but the pain of his wound
brought on faintness, and he was obliged to be put back in his litter
again. Soon after this a cannon ball struck the litter and dashed it
to pieces. The king was thrown out upon the ground. Those who saw him
fall supposed that he was killed, and they were struck with
consternation. They had been almost overpowered by their enemies
before, but they were now wholly disheartened and discouraged, and they
began to give way and fly in all directions.

The king had, however, not been touched by the ball which struck the
litter. He was at once raised from the ground by the officers around
him, and borne away out of the immediate danger. He remonstrated
earnestly against being taken away, and insisted upon making an effort
to rally his men; but the officers soon persuaded him that for the
present, at least, all was lost, and that the only hope for him was to
make his escape as soon as possible across the river, and thence over
the frontier into Turkey, where he would be safe from pursuit, and
could then consider what it would be best to do.

The king at length reluctantly yielded to these persuasions, and was
borne away.

In the mean time, the Czar himself had been exposed to great danger in
the battle, and, like the King of Sweden, had met with some very narrow
escapes. His hat was shot through with a bullet which half an inch
lower would have gone through the emperor's head. General Menzikoff
had three horses shot under him. But, notwithstanding these dangers,
the Czar pressed on into the thickest of the fight, and was present at
the head of his men when the Swedes were finally overwhelmed and driven
from the field. Indeed, he was among the foremost who pursued them;
and when he came to the place where the royal litter was lying, broken
to pieces, on the ground, he expressed great concern for the fate of
his enemy, and seemed to regret the calamity which had befallen him as
if Charles had been his friend. He had always greatly admired the
courage and the military skill which the King of Sweden had manifested
in his campaigns, and was disposed to respect his misfortunes now that
he had fallen. He supposed that he was unquestionably killed, and he
gave orders to his men to search every where over the field for the
body, and